Zimpapers Logo

Saul Chaminuka

Thupeyo Muleya in Beitbridge
THE Border Strikers Board of Trustees has fired Saul Chaminuka as head coach, putting an end to four months of an ambivalent relationship between the two parties. Chaminunka joined Border Strikers on a three-year contract in February. Club secretary Rodlet Chigwinya said they had appointed Never Malunga as interim caretaker coach. “We have parted ways with Chaminuka and appointed his assistant as caretaker coach. We had signed a three-year performance-based contract with Chaminuka and have seen that we cannot continue with the relationship, as it’s not producing results,” said Chigwinya.

“The coach had a tendency of disappearing after each game, only to show up on match days, sometimes late,” he said. Chigwinya said they were very worried about Chamunika’s absenteeism and his tendencies to arrive late with players’ licences. On Saturday Chaminuka arrived in Mhondoro 40 minutes late for the match against Ngezi Platinum, Chigwinya said.

“It is sad that out of 12 games, we only managed to win one and we cannot fold our hands and watch while the team is crumbling. We will be hunting for strikers during the mid-season break so that we can start collecting points and avoid relegation.”

He said they would also work flat out to ensure their players lead a decent life and are paid on time. Chaminuka yesterday said his sacking was a relief since the executive had not given him enough resources to motivate the team.

“It is true that I have cut ties with Border Strikers. This is a relief, it was long overdue. There is no other way one can produce results in the absence of adequate resources,” said Chaminuka.

“The players have great potential and all they need is motivation and they need to be paid good salaries on time,” he said. Border Strikers, who recently got a temporary reprieve to play their home matches at Dulivhadzimu Stadium, anchor the league table with three points and have managed to score only two goals since the start of the season and have conceded 15.

The team had been forced to play their home ties at Maglas Stadium in Zvishavane after the PSL condemned Dulivhadzimu prior to its upgrading.